The present invention pertains to an air purifier for removing irritating or harmful impurities from the air. More particularly, in the preferred embodiment of the invention the air purifier is free-standing and is a totally self-contained unit powered solely from a conventional AC source.
Pollens, lung damaging dust, smoke, bacteria and any one of a number of other irritants and micro-organisms are quite likely in the air that everyone breathes. These irritants are carried by the wind, on people's clothing, on the hair or feathers of a pet, or sprayed about by a sneeze or a cough. Contact with these irritants is almost inevitable. Also, for persons plagued by the miseries of emphysema, asthma, hay fever or other allergies, contact with irritants and micro-organisms means unpleasant discomfort and usually sleepless nights. Although different types of air purifiers presently exist, they are not completely effective in removing these irritants and micro-organisms from the air. Further, existing air purifiers do not provide the combination of effective removal of these contaminants along with the provision of a germicidal chamber for killing and oxidizing bacteria and virus.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an improved air purifier that has an improved filtration efficiency. The purifier of this invention removes from the air particles down to 0.3 micron in size with an efficiency of 99.9%. Unlike the electro-static type filters used in some purifiers the filtration system of the present purifier maintains this high filtration efficiency for a considerable length of time.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an air purifier having a plurality of filters comprising the filtration system including a main filter, a filter for removing offensive odors and a pre-filter for filtering the larger particles from the air and in this way increasing the efficient light span of the main filter.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an air purifier having, in addition to the efficient filtration system, an ultraviolet bacteria killing system employing preferably two ultraviolet lamps for killing and oxidizing bacteria and virus.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an air purifier wherein the components of the purifier are generally stacked in a vertical fashion within an elongated upright housing with the air being passed through the housing in a generally vertical upward direction. The air purifier of this invention draws air in at floor level and discharged preferably in four directions to provide optimum mixing of air in the room and as the air is discharged it filters down the bottom of the room where it is recirculated. As it filters down, it gathers particulates, providing optimum efficiency for the purifier.
Another object of the present invention is to provide preferably a pair of ultraviolet lamps which are arranged also in a vertical fashion within the housing of the air purifier so that the particles to be collected travel the length of the lamp thereby getting more exposure than if they traveled in another direction with relationship to the lamps.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a room air purifier which is useable in bedrooms, living rooms, offices, conference rooms, lounges, waiting rooms and any place where people with allergies or respiratory problems may be.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an air purifier that is compact, quiet, and attractive, requiring no special installation, and that is easy to move from room to room if necessary.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an air purifier having a two-speed blower and preferably two switches, one of which is an on-off switch and the other of which is a high-low blower speed switch.
A further object of the present invention is to provide safety interlock switches associated with the air purifier for preventing exposure to the ultraviolet lamps should the housing be opened while the air purifier is operating.